Wednesday, 18 December 2013

A Half Step Forward

I've written previously, as have many many others, about the risks of non-theraputic use of antibiotics in livestock. In other words using continued small doses of antibiotics when livestock are well in the hopes of preventing disease, and getting them up to market weight more quickly. They're not as widely used in the Maritimes with smaller feedlots, but are important to large confined operations with a lot of animals crammed together. It's something you'll often see on labels if you look for it "antiobiotc free". There's more information in the piece below on the huge health risks from this. The news is that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, for the first time, is acknowledging the risk, and beginning to police it (just beginning). With regulators on both sides of the border also looking at the use of neonicotinoids, there are two major environmental/health issues at least acknowledged by government agencies that have been lead footed in responding to growing evidence. A hopeful way end the year??

And a shout out to organic dairy. I've generally supported (bought) organic stuff not so much because of health worries, but more because of the much stronger soil management practiced by organic farmers. Healthy soils matters to them, and there's a lot more effort put into finding the environmentally safest way to manage pests and diseases, brains and experience trumping something bought off the shelf. But I did see a piece about different kinds (healthier) fats being found in organic milk because of the grass based diet. I still think a forage based livestock industry (as opposed to corn/soybean/grain) is something PEI farmers should consider. We can grow grass here as well if not better than anywhere else.

Think of farmers (and hopefully you'll know who they are) as you sit down to feast during the upcoming days. Yes we can do better, but these are moments for all of us to remember how lucky we are.

The F.D.A.’s Not-Really-Such-Good-News

That “good” news you may have read last week about the Food and Drug
Administration’s curbing antibiotics in animal feed may not be so good
after all. In fact, it appears that the F.D.A. has once again refused to
do all it could to protect public health.

For those who missed it, the agency requested
(and “requested” is the right word) that the pharmaceutical industry
make a labeling change that, the F.D.A. says, will reduce the routine
use of antibiotics in animal production. I’d happily be proven wrong,
but I don’t think it will. Rather, I think we’re looking at an
industry-friendly response to the public health emergency of diseases
caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria, resistance that is bred in
industrially raised animals.

You may know that around 80 percent
of antibiotics in the United States are given (fed, mostly) to animals.
Why? Because the terrible conditions in which most of our animals are
grown foster illness; give them antibiotics and illness is less likely.
There is also a belief that “subtherapeutic” doses of antibiotics help
animals grow faster. So most “farmers” who raise animals by the tens or
hundreds of thousands find it easier to feed them antibiotics than to
raise them in ways that allow antibiotics to be reserved for actual
illness. (And yes, there are alternatives, even in industrial settings.
Denmark raises as many hogs as Iowa and does it with far fewer
antibiotics.)

You may also know that this overuse of antibiotics is leading to increasing bacterial resistance,
that we’re breeding an army of supergerms. This isn’t theoretical: The
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 23,000
Americans died of illnesses related to antibiotic-resistant bacteria
each year. Another two million were sickened. (Some experts say that
these numbers are low.) This makes resistant bacteria a greater health
threat than AIDS, and there is talk by the C.D.C. of a post-antibiotic era.

The only solution, say most experts, is to stop the prophylactic use of
antibiotics and use the drugs only to treat animals that are actually
sick. (This is not news: Alexander Fleming, the discoverer of
penicillin, feared microbial resistance and discussed it in his Nobel Prize speech of 1945.) Preventing this is an ostensible goal of the F.D.A., which itself predicted — in 1977
— the very scenario in which overuse of antibiotics would lead to
superbugs and, at that time, proposed to limit their use. But Congress
got in the way and in the intervening years the agency appears to have
been infiltrated by industry-friendly administrators who publicly write
that “Using these drugs judiciously means that unnecessary or
inappropriate use should be avoided,” yet manage to avoid enforcing
these pronouncements.

The story of the last 36 years is one of inaction. The F.D.A. is already under a federal court order
to “ensure the safety and effectiveness of all drugs sold in interstate
commerce,” and to withdraw drugs demonstrated to be unsafe — a court
order the agency has appealed twice. One could see the new guidelines as
little more than an attempt to convince the court to set aside its
ruling.

Technically, reducing antibiotic use is simple. The science tells us it
is the thing to do, the meat industry has the capability of designing
animal-growing facilities that would foster less disease and, perhaps
most important, the F.D.A. has the power
to rule — not suggest — a complete ban of the use of antibiotics for
growth promotion and disease prevention in livestock.

This last statement is contentious. (If you want to make your own judgment about the F.D.A.'s legal power, have at it.)
Michael Taylor, the agency’s deputy commissioner for foods and
veterinary medicine (and — just in case you think the notion that there
is a revolving door between the F.D.A. and the food industry is
hyperbole — a former vice president for public policy at Monsanto), told
me, “The approval of a new animal drug for specific indication is like
the granting of a license; it applies to that company. There’s a
prescribed process for withdrawing that license … a very formal
administrative process. We can’t just issue a rule of general
applicability that extinguishes their due process rights.

“We don’t feel we have the legal authority,” he continued, to do “what
might be great to do from a public health policy standpoint. You’d have
to show product by product that each is contributing” to a resistance
problem. “This is a strategy to drive this to closure in the quickest
way possible. We expect and hope folks will watch us closely.”

We are talking about 287 different drugs, and Taylor says it might take
“three or four years” to go through the process for each one. These guidelines, he says — which were developed with the cooperation of the industry (uh-huh) — will work faster.

But there are other ways of looking at the F.D.A.'s ability to regulate.
These drugs fall into seven categories; nothing was preventing the
agency, three or four years ago, from picking a drug from each category
and beginning what Taylor calls “a very formal” process. Nothing
prevents them from doing it now — simultaneously with their new
guidelines — except, I would suggest, a desire to maintain a
noncontentious relationship with Big Pharma and Big Food. As each drug,
or category, was demonstrated to be unsafe, the process would become
less cumbersome and something “great” might actually be done for public
health.

It’s not just me saying this.

Margaret Mellon, a lawyer and a senior scientist at the Union of
Concerned Scientists, said to me, “The agency can legally withdraw the
label claims approvals if it can show that uses under the label
circumstances are no longer safe in terms of resistance.”

When I asked Representative Louise Slaughter — who happens to be a
microbiologist, and is among the few in Congress with both the knowledge
and spine to call out the F.D.A. — whether the agency had the authority
to ban antibiotics for any use except direct treatment, she barely let
me finish my question before exclaiming, “Of course they do.”

And Robert Martin, a program director at the Center for a Livable Future
at Johns Hopkins and a former director of the widely respected Pew
Commission on Industrial Farm Animal Production, told me, “They have the
authority to make these guidelines mandatory; the problem is that it’s
regulation by the consent of the regulated.”

I could go on.

This in part explains why millions more are doomed to be sickened by the
F.D.A.'s failures. You can blame Congress for inaction, too — shocking,
I know. The Preservation of Antibiotics for Medical Treatment Act
would require the F.D.A. to review its approvals of antibiotics and
cancel them for antibiotics that help breed resistant bacteria; in fact
it would put the burden of proof back on the companies, alleviating the
workload and contentiousness Taylor seems intent on avoiding. (In fact,
if the F.D.A. were truly interested in public health it would be out
there lobbying for the passage of PAMTA.) Slaughter has introduced this act four times since 2007, and it’s supported by almost everyone,
but it hasn’t passed. One wonders, though, since the F.D.A. is already
under court order to do pretty much the same thing, whether even PAMTA
would spur them on.

Instead, the F.D.A. has created a “road map for animal pharmaceutical
companies to voluntarily revise the F.D.A.-approved use conditions on
the labels of these products to remove production indications.” No
obligation. And no problem labeling those same drugs as
disease-prevention vehicles, as long as those uses are “judicious and
appropriate,” says Taylor. Whether you call it growth promotion or
disease prevention, the effects are likely to be on labels only, not on
public health. (It seems to me that if you prevent disease you promote
growth, and vice versa. It also seems to me that if you prevent disease
by having healthy growing conditions you don’t need to prevent it with
antibiotics.)

And drug companies are O.K. with this new “guidance,” because it’s so benign it won’t affect their bottom lines. In a Wall Street Journal piece,
Jeff Simmons, the president of Eli Lilly’s “animal-health division,”
was quoted as saying, “We do not see this announcement being a material
event.”

The F.D.A. says it “is asking animal pharmaceutical companies to notify
the agency of their intent to sign on to the strategy within the next
three months.” (There are no provisions for noncooperation.) “These
companies would then have a three-year transition process.” In other
words, drug companies have three months to “comply” with a voluntary
plan to marginally change their labeling, and three years to implement
that. Again, if they don’t … sorry, there’s no plan.

Strenuous oversight, huh? During which time industry can figure out how
to increase the amount of antibiotics they sell, as long as they don’t
label them as growth-promoting. Yet Taylor insists that “this will make a
difference for resistance.”

In those three years, something like 69,000 Americans will have died
from antibiotic-resistant bacterial diseases; many subsequent deaths may
be preventable if rampant use of antibiotics is curbed now. But when
insiders talk about the expected percentage decline in antibiotic use as
a result of the F.D.A. recommendations, the smart money is on “zero.”
And when I asked Taylor, “How much do you anticipate routine antibiotic
use declining in the next few years?” he answered, “It’s a fair question
but I don’t have an answer for you — we need to work on that.”

It’s depressing. I root for the F.D.A. to do its job, but the power of
industry and its anti-regulatory lobby adds up to an apparent
unwillingness to put public health above all else. And by phasing this
in over three years (by which time we’ll have a new and possibly less
supportive president), the agency has bought itself and the industry
more time before bowing to the inevitable change in our horrific animal
production system.

In fact, the worst thing about the new guidelines may be that they’re
seen as a first step, and as such rule out a more meaningful one.
(Center for a Livable Future’s Martin said to me, “My fear is now we
won’t see anything new for a decade.”) It’s bad news masquerading as
good news. The F.D.A. is claiming, “We’re controlling the use of
antibiotics in animal production!” But it’s more like Congress
declaring, “We’re raising the minimum wage!” and then appending “...by
10 cents an hour. And we’ll review the impact of this monumental change
in three years!”

I should point out that some of my favorite antibiotic-overuse critics
are more optimistic, among them the former F.D.A. head David Kessler,
who was quoted in these pages
as saying, “This is the first significant step in dealing with this
important public health concern in 20 years,” and Laura Rogers, a
director at the Pew Charitable Trusts, who told me, “These criteria
represent a meaningful shift in the agency’s public policy, and bode
well for future action.” (“That said,” Rogers added, “we are concerned
that antibiotics will still be used for disease prevention, possibly in
place of growth promotion.”)

Rogers is admirably diplomatic, but I agree more closely with
Representative Slaughter, who wrote, “Sadly, this guidance is the
biggest step the F.D.A. has taken in a generation to combat the overuse
of antibiotics in corporate agriculture, and it falls woefully short of
what is needed.”

It’s also worth noting that the F.D.A. has drafted (that means it’s not
even yet a recommendation) a “directive” that would require that
veterinarians supervise antibiotic use. Make that final and make that
mandatory — as the agency is threatening to do if these voluntary
guidelines don’t work — and we might be getting somewhere. But
the best-case scenario is that within three years some or even all
growth-promotion claims will have been dropped and the use of
antibiotics will be approved by veterinarians — many of whom have jobs
that will depend on approving just such uses. I see no reason to be
encouraged. It may truly be worse than nothing, or it may simply be a
delay we can ill afford.

Public safety is the F.D.A.'s job, and they’re doing it badly. What’s
needed here is a drastic reduction in the use of antibiotics, now,
and few people think these recommendations are going to do that. As the
Union of Concerned Scientists’ Mellon said to me, “This recommendation
involves voluntarily giving up making money in the interest of public
safety. Who does that in the United States? No one.”

What can we do? Push for labeling, for one thing: “Raised without
antibiotics” (period) is a label we could pay more attention to. And
push our markets to carry more truly antibiotic-free meat, and buy it.
Organic meat is another obvious solution. I’ll get to strategies like
these in another column. But as Slaughter said, “I’m persuaded now that
the only thing we can do is get an outcry from the public.” Make some
noise, people.

Bees deaths: Pros and cons of pesticide ban paid out in submissions to regulator

by Kelsey Johnson

December 12 is the last day for public comment on whether a controversial pesticide is harming the country’s bee population.
Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) has been
seeking public input since September on recommendations meant to
“mitigate risks to pollinators, related to the use of neonicotinoid
treated corn and soybean seed,” the agency’s notice of intent reads.
The PMRA is responsible for monitoring and regulating the use of pesticides in Canada.
With the deadline fast approaching, a number of industry groups –
including the Ontario Beekeepers Association and CropLife Canada – have
already submitted their written comments on the PMRA’s recommendations.

In their 15-page long submission, Pierre Patelle, vice-president
chemistry, and Maria Trainer, managing director regulatory affairs, said
CropLife Canada agreed with the PMRA’s recommendations “in principle.”
“CropLife Canada and our member companies are strongly supportive of
the measures outlined in the Notice of Intent,” the submission reads.
“We have already taken significant steps to address many of the
requirements.”
Those steps, CropLife writes, include the development of best
management practices to reduce dust, improving planting technology and
changes to seed bag labels.
CropLife Canada represents companies who develop and produce pesticides like neonicotinoids.
However, the group’s detailed submission goes on to say seed
treatments, like the ones found on corn and soybeans, are essential
tools for farmers because they help boost crop yields. ”Without these
products, we would lose a significant percentage of our crops to pests
and diseases,” the documents said.
Beekeepers disagree. In his report to the PMRA, Ontario Beekeepers
Association President Dan Davidson argued seed treatments in Canada are
“generally applied prophylactically regardless of whether pests are
present in a particular field or at levels that will lead to economic
losses.”
“Numerous studies indicate that preventive treatments like seed
coatings may not result in yield benefits and can be less cost effective
than other control measures,” the OBA added. As for labelling changes,
the beekeepers argue current labels already state the chemicals are
toxic and environmental harmful.
“And yet, bees are still dying by the millions,” Davidson submission
reads. For now, he adds, the only way to protect the country’s bees is
to suspend the use of neonicotinoid pesticides until we understand how
to manage the risks posed by these products to honey bees and other
pollinators.”
The PMRA’s request for public comment comes after the agency
determined the popular seed treatment (used on corn, canola and soybean
seeds) were killing pollinators like bees. The crisis – which government
agency has said is concentrated to Ontario and Quebec – showed current
agriculture practices were unsustainable, the agency said.
“There is a clear problem here that needs to be addressed as soon as
possible so we are taking action on this issue right now,” Scott Kirby,
director of environmental assessment directorate for the PMRA, told
iPolitics during a Sept. 16 interview.
That action comes in the form of a series of PMRA recommendations
including data collection and label changes on seed bags, changes to how
farmers prepare for planting and enforcing the use of new dust-reducing
seed flow lubricants, which help seeds from getting stuck in the
seeder.
Controlling dust during planting is essential because the PMRA
believes the dust produced by seeds treated with neonicotinoids is
what’s largely impacting bee health. Seeds coated with pesticides
produce toxic dust, which then coats the bees who then carry it to their
hives.
The dust can also contaminate the bee’s water supply, poisoning the bees when they drink.
In 2012, 40 beekeepers – and more than 200 bee yards – in Southern
Ontario reported record losses to the PMRA. One Quebec beekeeper also
reported losses, according to an agency report release in April. Of
these, the PMRA determined 70 percent of the deaths were caused by
direct contact with dust contaminated with neonicotinoids.
In 2013, a national survey by the Canadian Association for
Professional Apiarists found colony mortality in Canada has nearly
doubled from 15 per cent to 29 per cent. Bee mortality was even higher
in Ontario and Manitoba, with losses ranging from 38 to 46 per cent
respectively. Beekeepers have repeatedly said these losses are not
sustainable.

Organic milk proves higher in healthy fats

by Tom Philpott

Dec. 13, 2013

The long-simmering debate over whether organically grown food packs more nutritional punch than conventional has a new data point. In a recent study published in the peer-reviewed PLOS-One,
a research team led by Washington State University's Charles Benbrook
found that organic milk delivers significantly healthier fats than its
non-organic counterpart.
The team took samples of organic and non-organic whole milk taken
from 14 commercial milk processors across the United States over the
course of 18 months and analyzed their fat content. They found that
organic milk delivered on average 62 percent more omega-3 fatty acids,
and 25 percent fewer omega-6 fatty acids.

Both types are essential in the
human diet, but a growing consensus holds that Americans on average
don't get enough omega-3s, which have been associated with protection
against heart disease and stroke, potentially cancer, and autoimmune
conditions like inflammatory bowel disease, lupus, and rheumatoid
arthritis, according to Frank Sacks,
a professor at Harvard's School of Public Health. The science is more
cloudy on our omega-6s, which are abundant in the vegetable oils that
have grown popular in recent decades. Some scientists believe that
Americans over-consume them; others, including Harvard's Sacks,
disagree.
The PLOS-One study attributes the higher omega-3 content in organic milk to the cows' diets—according to USDA certification standards,
organically raised cows have to spend at least four months per year on
pasture, chomping on omega-3 rich grasses, while conventionally raised
cows tend to eat omega-6-rich corn year-round.
Interestingly, in one region, organic and conventional milk samples
showed similar, omega-3 rich fat profiles: northern California's
Humboldt County. There, the researchers say, "both types of dairy farms
graze cattle for over 250 days per year." The highest divergence in fat
profiles between organic and conventional showed up in the Mid-Atlantic
region, they report.
Another factor pointing to diet, and specifically grass, as the key: organic milk had 55 percent higher levels of the beneficial
fatty acid CLA, or conjugated linoleic acid, in the pasture-rich summer
months than in winter. For conventional milk cows, who tend to get
little access to grass year-round, CLA levels clocked in only 12 percent
higher in summer.
It's important to note that Organic Valley, the farmer-owned organic
dairy cooperative, donated $45,000 to fund the research, and Maged A.
Latif, director of research and quality at Organic Valley, is one of the
paper's co-authors.
But the paper's publication in PLOS-One, one of the nation's
premier refereed science journals, lends it credibility. And it has
been well-received in fat-research circles, reports The New York Times.
Nor is it the first study to document fatty-acid advantages in organic milk. In this 2010 paper, UK researchers found similar differences in that country's organic and conventional milk. (I wrote about it here.) As in the US study, access to pasture emerged as the driver of the nutritional difference.
The takeaway seems to be: milk from grass-fed cows seems to have more
healthy fats then conventional milk. And for consumers, the organic
label is a good shorthand way to find milk from cows eating the good
stuff.

About Me

I've done little planning, but been extraordinarily lucky. New opportunities seem to appear when I got bored, or my boss got tired of me. After teaching at high school and university, and market gardening when I went "back to the land", I spent 30 years working for the CBC, most of it when CBC had the resources to do things that mattered, not the media sweatshop its become now. Again, I was the lucky one.